Chapter 28 – The Glass Cage
When Hua Mian woke up again, she found herself trapped inside a glass enclosure. She was lying on a bedding on the floor, with a drinking device and a washstand nearby.
Not far away, there was a toilet, partially screened by a curtain, offering a semblance of privacy.
Bright lights filled the four corners of the enclosure, illuminating everything with unnerving clarity, giving her a sense of uncertain fear.
Then she heard a sound like a rolling shutter being pulled open.
“New merchandise?”
“Yes, this batch includes two top-tier ones.”
“Oh? Can we see them?”
“Well…”
“Mr. Jin traveled all this way because he knows your service is exceptional and your merchandise top quality.”
…
The two male voices gradually faded away, leaving Hua Mian feeling her hands and feet grow cold.
Soon after, the rhythmic sound of shoes stepping on the floor echoed.
Leading the way was a tall, thin, stick-like beastman. He was accompanied by another beastman with slightly dark skin and bulging eyes, both approaching her with obvious eagerness.
Instinctively, she hugged her legs and watched them warily.
“Hiss… beautiful, indeed beautiful.”
The tall, stick-like beastman said, “Of course! She’s the ace of this batch!”
The two men pressed eagerly against the glass as if trying to fuse their eyes to her body—it was utterly disgusting.
“Who are you? Where is this place?” Hua Mian’s eyes reddened.
“Such a sweet voice… truly a rare beauty,” the bulging-eyed beastman said with burning desire.
“You actually imprison females! This is illegal!” Hua Mian shouted loudly.
The tall stick-like beastman remained indifferent, even sneering, his face full of disdain. “The law is meant to restrain ordinary people. What does it have to do with us?”
After speaking, he exchanged a glance with the bulging-eyed beastman and laughed heartily.
“My husband will come to rescue me!” Hua Mian’s eyes brimmed with tears, her face pale, trembling.
“Hah, he can barely protect himself, so don’t count on him. Hoping he’ll save you is less reliable than hoping I’ll take pity on you and let you go,” the tall beastman said, his gaze fixed on her.
Suppressing her nausea, Hua Mian asked, “What did you do to him?”
“What else could we do, naturally…”
Before he could finish, the bulging-eyed beastman stopped him.
He scanned Hua Mian from head to toe, then told the tall one, “In your line of work, the most important thing is to keep your mouth shut. Any information you’re not supposed to share must be treated as unknown.”
Hua Mian realized she had triggered the bulging-eyed beastman’s suspicion and felt a pang of disappointment. If both of them were like the tall one, she might have been able to extract more information.
After being reminded, the tall one stopped speaking and left with the bulging-eyed beastman.
Before leaving, the bulging-eyed one gave her a strange, appraising look from head to toe.
Once they were gone, Hua Mian pretended to be exhausted from crying and quietly lay back on her bedding, reviewing the information she knew.
Her disappearance was definitely related to the orange-eared boy and the hotel since he had sought her out, and the hotel was his introduction.
The gemstone auction was held at that hotel, which meant the hotel was linked to the auction as well.
Before she lost consciousness in the cage, she had smelled a strong odor of cheap plastic, and shortly after, she had passed out. Now, she had no sense of time.
She had also detected a faint plastic smell from the black robes at the gemstone auction and had remarked to Yu Jin that the quality of those robes was terrible.
She now suspected that the cheap plastic odor could knock someone out—Yu Jin might have fallen for it too.
The tall beastman had confidently claimed that Yu Jin couldn’t protect himself, so he was probably captured as well.
She had to figure out a way to save herself.
Despite these thoughts, two days passed while she ate six meals, and she didn’t see anyone; the food was delivered by robots.
Even the bowls and chopsticks were made of a special material that softened after half an hour, leaving her with no tools at all.
On the third day, the tall stick-like beastman appeared.
“Put on the dress.”
A white dress was tossed through the narrow window. Tears streamed down Hua Mian’s face as she repeated, “I don’t want to!”
The tall beastman’s face darkened immediately. He sneered, “Then I’ll put it on you myself!”
Hua Mian hugged herself and stepped back.
The tall beastman tapped rapidly on the glass door, forming a door shape, followed by an iris scan. The door opened.
“I’ll do it myself! I’ll do it myself! Waaa…” Hua Mian cried pitifully.
The tall beastman remained unmoved. “You have three minutes.”
Hua Mian grabbed the dress, hid behind the curtain, and quickly put it on.
She discovered it was extremely revealing: halter-neck design, bare back, visible waist, and a hollowed-out chest revealing a deep cleavage. The skirt was short, barely covering a third of her thighs.
“I…I’m ready…” she stammered, covering her chest with her hands.
The tall beastman stared in awe, even licking his lips.
“Come out.”
Hua Mian, pale and timid, cautiously walked toward the door, but suddenly tripped on her own feet.
She accidentally pushed the door, and the missile-proof glass slammed shut with a bang.
The tall beastman was about to curse when Hua Mian began crying.
“Waa… I’m sorry…”
Seeing her cry so sincerely, his anger diminished slightly.
“Shut up,” he said, still scowling.
Hua Mian covered her mouth, her eyes red like a rabbit’s.
The tall beastman tried again, and the door reopened.
“I… I can’t move,” Hua Mian trembled, unable to sit up despite several attempts.
The tall beastman stormed in and grabbed her arm.
She stumbled and fell into his arms.
Startled by the beauty falling into his embrace, he paused for a moment.
At that instant, a small concealed dagger slashed his carotid artery.
Blood spurted like a fountain. His eyes widened, he tried to cover it with his hands but failed, and after a few breaths, he collapsed dead, staring at Hua Mian until his last moment.
Hua Mian looked on coldly.
After confirming his death, she ignored the blood, gouged out his right eye, and cut off his right index finger.
Then, holding the items, she walked out of the glass door without looking back.
A few steps away was another glass enclosure. Inside, a female looked at Hua Mian’s blood-soaked dress with shock and suspicion.
“What is this…”
“Want to get out?” Hua Mian asked casually.
“Yes. Can you help me?” The female was bold, unafraid that Hua Mian might harm her.
“I can try.”
Hua Mian recalled the approximate height and distance of the door from the tall beastman and began using the severed finger to operate the glass door.
Evelyn (the female) widened her eyes at the sight of the severed finger.
Soon, Hua Mian finished, and within two seconds, a door appeared. The iris scan followed.
Hua Mian smiled, confident she remembered correctly. She raised the eyeball, and the glass door opened.
Evelyn instinctively stepped back, realizing that although she was tough, this seemingly delicate female was far more formidable.
“Come out.”
“Okay, I’m Evelyn.”
Meeting Evelyn’s expectant and admiring gaze, Hua Mian said, “I’m A Mian.”
“A Mian, what should we do next?”
“Do you have a good memory?”
